


Bracelets, Rings, and Other Boxed Things

by sighingstories



Category: Boku no Hero Academia, My Hero Academia, 僕のヒーローアカデミア | Boku no Hero Academia | My Hero Academia
Genre: Aged Up, Cute, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Getting Together, Gift Giving, Gifts, I just wanted to write about matching bracelets and this happened, M/M, Moving In Together, Mutual Pining, Oneshot, Pining, Post-Canon, Rated T for some cussing, Rings but not engaged, Small mistakes leading to confessions, Soft Boys, how do i tag help, idk wanted to be safe ig, oblivious idiots, tddk, this is my first fic since I was a teenager please have mercy, tododeku - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-26
Updated: 2019-06-26
Packaged: 2020-05-21 05:11:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,418
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19367305
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sighingstories/pseuds/sighingstories
Summary: It’s been a year since class 3-A graduated, and a year since Todoroki Shouto realized he was in love with his best friend. If only he could tell him how he feels.Or: a post-canon, getting-together fic full of tddk fluff and love





	Bracelets, Rings, and Other Boxed Things

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! This is my first fic in YEARS so please enjoy! Feedback is welcome, I hope you like it! If there’s typos or anything, feel free to let me know. I don’t know how formatting works on AO3 yet so I’m hoping this posts okay! Other notes at the end :)

It’s been an entire year since class 3-A has graduated. In other words, it’s also been an entire year that Todoroki Shouto has spent trying to find a way to tell his best friend that he’s head-over-heels in love with him. Looking back on the time they’ve known each other, Shouto wants to rip his hair out for not noticing his own feelings earlier. How he spent almost three entire years not comprehending that the fluttering in his stomach was connected to green eyes and fluffy curls was utterly maddening to him. The amount of time he had confused lighting himself on fire at the sight of smiles that could melt the ice caps for simple quirk malfunction was so frustrating he could bang his head against the wall for another three years entirely. Shouto can’t believe that he’d spent so much time making excuses for the obvious, and even more so that all it took for him to connect the dots was a gift from Izuku the night before they graduated UA. 

 

Shouto thinks about that time a lot, more and more as time passes, it seems. He’s made so many fond memories with Izuku over the years, but that night has to be in the top three. He remembers the sound of a knock on his door as he was finishing packing up the rest of his dorm room, only to find no one there when he opened it. Thankfully, Shouto was at least somewhat observant, and quickly noticed the sticky note stuck to his door. He remembers smiling fondly as he looked at the message, carefully scrawled in red ink (Izuku always used red ink when writing to Shouto, and Shouto used green when writing back to his friend). ‘Meet by the pond at 7,’ was surrounded by little doodles of flames and ice shards, as well as a tiny All Might. Izuku was always thoughtful like that, Shouto remembers. He still is now, too. Shouto will often find notes on his desk at their hero agency that resemble the ones he received in their time at UA. Of course, he has kept every note that Izuku has ever written him in a box tucked neatly inside the closet of his home office for safe keeping. So really, it’s astounding that he didn’t notice before that night how utterly in love with his best friend he was. Alas, it wasn’t until he walked up to the pond that night that he finally connected the dots between his feelings and the boy sitting by the water.

 

The sun was starting to set as Shouto finally made it to the pond. Pink and gold swirled in the sky, reflecting off of the small body of water and casting Izuku in what looked like a halo or heavenly aura. Hearing Shouto approach, Izuku flashed a signature smile his way. It was at this moment Shouto realized just how much they’d both grown up since their first year in hero training. Izuku has grown taller, now having a good two or so inches on Shouto’s also increased height. They’d both also become broader, although Shouto stayed quite lean in comparison to Izuku’s build, which Shouto could only liken to a brick wall. ‘Yeah,’ Shouto thought, ‘we’ve really changed quite a bit.’ Izuku pat the ground next to him, beckoning Shouto to sit. 

Wistfully, and almost a bit sad, he inquired, “All packed up? Ready to move out?” 

“Yeah, I was just finishing up when you left the note. It’s kind of bittersweet, isn’t it? Like leaving home.”

With tears glittering his eyes, Izuku laughed, “well, it is leaving home. Our home. I-I’m gonna miss you so much, Shou.” 

Shouto blushed at the nickname, looking out over the pond. He sighed, heavy and heartfelt. “I’ll miss you too, ‘Zuku. But we’ll be working at the same agency and living in the same apartment building. It’ll be different, but not much. Still just a few doors away.”

Now it was Izuku’s turn to turn pink, a light dusting of the color covering the constellations of freckles on his cheekbones. He smiled, this time with less tears and huffed, “I guess you’re right, it still just seems so weird. I’ve gotten so used to this routine, y’know? I mean, hell, we eat breakfast and brush our teeth together daily! It’s going to be a.. big adjustment.”

Shouto smiled warmly as Izuku continued, “so I guess.. I guess that’s why I wanted to give you this. Well, these? This? One of them is for me, I guess that’s kind of weird? I mean, I don’t mean for it to be weird! I just wanted—“ 

Shouto laughed, while Izuku rambled less these days, the old habit still came out when he was worried or flustered. Luckily, Shouto knew to cut him off before it turned into a full-blown panic. 

“Izu. You’re fine. You want to give me what, now?”

“O-oh! Yeah! Sorry Shou, got a little carried away there, ha,” he said, blushing as he pulled a small box out of his pocket. “I, uh, made these. For both of us. To wear. If, uh, if that’s okay? You don’t have to if you don’t want to. Or if you don’t like them! I can even make different ones, i-if you’d prefer!” 

Shouto smiled and shook his head as he took the small box from Izuku. He was glad some things never changed. Flustered Izuku was one of the things he adored the most. Shouto opened the small box, and his mouth fell into a small ‘o.’ With blushing cheeks, a fluttering stomach, and shaking hands, Shouto understood. He understood that all of those things he experienced so often were actually connected to the boy beside him. He had watched many of his classmates fall in love, yet he had never realized that the same had happened to him. Until that moment, looking down at two bracelets nestled into a box, Shouto Todoroki hadn’t realized he was in love. He was quickly brought out of this revelation however, as Izuku sniffled. 

“Oh god, you hate them don’t you? I’m so sorry I shouldn’t have, ugh,” was mumbled at him as Izuku tried to take the small box from Shouto’s hands. His grip tightened and he held the box closer to him, startling Izuku with what could only be described as a panicked yelp.

“No!”

Okay, maybe it was more of a screech than a yelp, but Shouto wouldn’t admit that and Izuku sure as hell wouldn’t ever call him on it. 

“No, I-I love them. Thank you, ‘Zuku. Really. I can’t ever thank you enough.” 

Izuku’s eyes shone with a new light, hopeful and happy, then suddenly worried again. 

“Uh, Shou, you’re on fire.”

Shouto looked down, and All Might be damned, he sure was. 

“Shit. Uh, hold these, please,” he said, shoving the box back into Izuku’s hands as he quickly extinguished the flames. Izuku laughed, the sound reminding Shouto of the fact that he was most definitely in love with the boy next to him. God, how had he not noticed until now? How had he not realized that if Izuku’s laugh was the only sound he could hear for the rest of his life, he would have no complaints of missing any other noise? 

“Can, can we put them on?” Shouto asked softly, looking back over the lowering sunset to avoid setting ablaze again. 

“Of course!” Izuku quipped, smiling brighter than any setting sun could ever, and Shouto realized he was thoroughly fucked. That he had truly and completely fallen down the rabbit hole that is being in love. It took all of his strength to not burst into flames again as Izuku grabbed his hand to fasten the bracelet around his wrist. Teal-green, black, and red ribbons were braided intricately, meeting two charms in the middle. Shouto studied the charms for a moment, smiling softly as he looked at the small silver bunny and punching fist that were now nestled on his wrist. As he looked up, he met Izuku’s eyes and smiled gratefully.

“Want me to put yours on?” He asked, not really waiting for an answer, and instead grabbing Izuku’s hand to return the favor. Shouto smiled as he clasped the bracelet; much like his, but with red, white, and blue ribbons meeting silver charms shaped like a flame and a snowflake in the middle. Izuku coughed, and Shouto realized he’d been holding and staring at Izuku’s wrist for an extra moment after he finished fixing the bracelet. He, once again, blushed furiously and then looked up at Izuku, who was smiling so big that Shouto thought his face might split in two. Without thinking, Shouto enveloped Izuku in a hug. 

Izuku hugged back fiercely, sighing happily into the crook of Shouto’s neck. As they pulled apart, still sitting a bit closer together than they had started, Izuku took his turn to look over the pond. The sun had just gone down now.

“I just want us to always be together, even when we can’t. This was the best thing I could come up with. Thank you, Shouto, for always being by my side.”

Shouto put his arm around Izuku, bringing the boy’s head to rest on his shoulder. 

“Of course, Izuku. Thank you. For the gift, and for always being by my side, too.”

 

They wear the matching bracelets still, not even taking them off to patrol. Izuku had enlisted Hatsume to quirk-proof them at one point, which had almost resulted in the bracelets being destroyed. Thankfully, each piece of sentimental jewelry made it out in tact and much stronger. It didn’t stop Shouto from almost having a breakdown from concern of losing his most prized possession, though.

 

So now, for a year since that night, Shouto has been trying to figure out how exactly to tell Izuku about his big revelation. Unfortunately, Shouto is really bad at expressing himself in ways that get the point across. Leaving Izuku notes and bentos on his desk at the agency isn’t exactly a declaration of love. Neither is their weekly movie night, whether it’s at his apartment or Izuku’s, or how close they are when they finally fall asleep on the couch. Also unfortunately, all the ideas he has had over the past year that actually do seem like a declaration of love are left untouched in a box next to the box of Izuku’s notes. They range from love letters all the way up to rings that Shouto bought, only to realize that they were way too much to spring on someone who doesn’t even know you love them. He would’ve returned them, but honestly, he was just too embarrassed. 

 

Then the other night Izuku had joked that he and Shouto should just move in together since they spend their time at each other’s apartments so often, and Shouto told him, in all seriousness, that they should. He never used his home office anyway, doing most of his paperwork on the couch or at the agency, and the room was meant to be a second bedroom anyway. It would cut down on rent for both of them if they were splitting the cost. Shouto may have also thrown in that they could eat breakfast and brush their teeth together once again, mirroring Izuku’s words from the year before and making the curly-haired hero blush. But why not? They spent most of their time, both working and not, together.. so it just made sense. When Izuku agreed, it was so hard for Shouto to calm his heart down that he considered going to the hospital just to make sure he wasn’t going into cardiac arrest.

 

A week later, he had handed a copy of his apartment key—their apartment key—to Izuku and told him that he’d meet him in an hour to help him move in, he just had to finish up some paperwork at the agency first. In retrospect, Shouto should have known that Izuku’s good nature would catch up to him eventually.

 

——————-

 

Izuku decided that it would be easier to start without Shouto. He deserved a break after all, and Izuku was more than strong enough to move boxes from one apartment to another. Plus, it would give him some time to calm his heart, because that was definitely about to beat out of his chest! Izuku could hardly believe he was moving in with Shouto. It was just as friends of course, but there was always a part of Izuku that held onto the hope that one day Shouto could love him in the same way that he loves Shouto. Izuku knew that he was in love from their first sports festival, after Shouto told him about his family and Izuku had almost broken himself into pieces to show Shouto that his fire was his, not his father’s. He had held onto that love for years now, even trying to confess the night before they graduated. He had given Shouto the bracelets—the ones that still reside on their wrists today—as a token of his burning affection, and Shouto had accepted them. They hadn’t exactly said ‘I love you’ but for Izuku, the sentiment was there. Those bracelets were the declaration of his love for his best friend. Now, if only he could actually say the words. Hopefully, in time he could gather the courage. For now though, he would just have to settle for taking some of the work off of Shouto’s shoulders and start moving into his new home. Their home.

 

Izuku made good time, getting all of his boxes into the previously emptied home office in around 25 minutes. With the help of One For All of course, but who wouldn’t want a little boost while moving? With 35 minutes still left until Shouto would be home, he placed an order for their normal movie night take-out and decided to start unpacking. ‘Clothes first,’ thought Izuku, ‘that way I don’t have to rummage around to get dressed tomorrow.’ However, when Izuku opened the closet to begin his organization, he realized that Shouto must have left two boxes on the top shelf. 

“No problem. I’ll just check what they are and put them where I think Shou would want them. Don’t want him to have to worry about these. Right!” Izuku said, trying to make the project of unpacking a little less lonely by speaking out loud. He took the two small boxes down and went into the living room, sitting down on the couch. 

“Now let’s see where you belong, little boxes!”

Izuku opened the first box, and was greeted with a mess of paper. Sticky notes, ripped pieces of notebook paper, and the like stared back at him. 

“Shouto really needs a filing system, jeez! Let’s see if I can organize these just a little bit for him.”

But when Izuku pulled out the first few pieces of paper, he was overcome with emotion. They were all familiar to him, very very familiar. In fact, each piece of paper was covered in his own handwriting. After a brief moment of confusion, he realized that they were all notes he had written for Shouto. The ones on top were more recent, but as he dug deeper into the box, he found they got older and older. There were even notes from their first year in here! 

‘Todoroki-kun, wanna go for a run Saturday? 7am okay?’

‘Shouto-kun, want to watch the new All Might documentary on Wednesday?’

‘Shoucchan, let’s check out the cat cafe that just opened!’

‘Shouto, I baked some cookies for you to take to your mom—they’re in the kitchen’

‘You left your notebook in my room, I’ll bring it to class for you!’

Izuku was smiling so hard that he neither noticed the tears rolling down his cheeks, nor the sound of the door opening.

 

The sound of Shouto being concerned brought him out of his emotional stupor.

“Izuku! Izu, are you okay? Why are you cryi—oh. Uh, I can explain that!”

Izuku looked up, and Shouto noticed he was smiling, not just crying. Did he not think Shouto was weird? Or was he just trying to make Shouto think that he didn’t think he was weird? Oh god, this could be bad.

“Y-you kept all these? Every note?” Izuku tried hard to keep his voice steady.

Shouto eyed the second box, thankfully still unopened, then looked back at Izuku. He cleared his throat and looked down at his feet.

“I, uh, yeah. I did. Is that weird? Sorry. I didn’t mean to creep you out.”

Now it was Izuku’s turn to sound concerned. “No! You didn’t creep me out, I-“ he looked down at the ground before continuing, “I think it’s sweet. You-you’re sweet. I kept a lot of yours too, but now I feel like I should’ve kept each one.. we could’ve, I don’t know, made a scrapbook or something!” 

Izuku looks up as he hears Shouto snort out a laugh of sorts, but Shouto is staring at the second, unopened box. As Izuku reaches for it, Shouto’s eyes go as wide as Izuku thinks is humanly possible and he all but screams, “NO!” 

Izuku pulls his hand back and winces, and Shouto is quick to apologize.

“I’m sorry, I just, not that box. If you see that one I don’t think you’ll ever talk to me again.” He looks back down, worried and ashamed.

“What? Have you been taking pictures of me while I sleep or something? Keeping locks of my hair? There’s nothing that could be in that box that could make me want to not be around you, Shou. You know that.”

Shouto doesn’t answer, he just bites his lip like he’s trying not to cry or yell. 

“Wait, please tell me you haven’t been keeping my hair,” Izuku jokes.

“God, no Izuku, gross. Of course not! It’s just, I just, I don’t want to lose you. I can’t lose you over this.” His voice quiets on the last few words and Izuku bounds over to him and wraps him into a hug. 

“Shou, you won’t lose me. It’s not possible. Whether or not you like it, you’re stuck with me. That was decided when you let me put that bracelet on your wrist a year ago. Hell, that was actually probably decided the day I made you use your fire. I’m not going anywhere unless you physically force me to. Always by each other’s side, right?”

Shouto sighs and falls a little more into the embrace as he mumbles into Izuku’s shoulder, “you promise? No matter what? You won’t hate me? Or think I’m weird? Or crazy?”

Izuku pulls back to look into Shouto’s eyes. 

“I would never hate you, or think any of those things.”

Shouto closes his eyes and rubs a hand over his face, suddenly looking like he could use about ten years of sleep.

“Okay. Yeah. Okay. Open it. I-I’m sorry, Izuku. Just, if you do hate me, I’m sorry.”

Shouto goes to sit on the couch and Izuku joins him, flashing one of his signature smiles. 

“You have nothing to be sorry for, Shou.” And with that, he slides the lid off the box.

 

Izuku is unsure of what he’s looking at, at first. There’s papers in here too, like the other box, and what looks like plane tickets? A DVD, a few photos with writing on the back, and the box he gave Shouto the bracelets in a year ago seem to all be nestled inside, as well. Definitely nothing Izuku recognizes, besides the bracelet box and the photos—he recognizes those. One from their first sports festival, one from their graduation day, and one from their first day at the agency. 

“Uh Shou, no offense, but this all seems pretty normal?” Izuku is confused. Why would Shouto think these things would upset him? He also keeps a lot of mementos, especially if they relate to Shouto.

“It’s not if you look closer,” Shouto sighs, head in his hands. He’s shaking, and Izuku is concerned, but decides to press on to try to understand.

He starts with the photos, each with a little blurb written on the back, obviously in Shouto’s handwriting—and green pen, just like the notes he writes to Izuku. 

The first one is from their sports festival, it seems to be a professional photo that was taken of their fight. They both look beat to hell and Izuku is yelling something at Shouto. On the back Shouto wrote, ‘you told me it was my power, but I think I get all my power from you.’ It’s touching, and Izuku blushes, but he can’t understand why Shouto is so worried. He looks at the graduation photo and the agency photo, both in the same pose: one arm around the other and smiling brightly. The former says, ‘I’ll miss you, too, but I’ll always be by your side.’ When he flips over the latter it reads, ‘you are my hero, now and forever.’ 

Izuku sniffles, and smiles. 

“Shou these are really sweet, I still don’t get why you’re so upset?”

“Keep going,” Shouto groans, still not looking at Izuku.

The plane tickets are for America. California, to be exact. They expired four months ago, Izuku doesn’t understand so he moves on. The DVD is unlabeled other than his name in green sharpie, so he leaves that, too. He grabs a paper and Shouto visibly winces. Izuku continues.

‘Izu,

How do I say what I’ve been trying to tell you for the past three months? Do my actions not mean anything? How do I make you see?’

Okay, now Izuku is confused. He grabs another. 

‘I tried to tell you again today. I don’t know how. How could I ever deserve you? Everything you’ve done for me?’

“Uh Shou, I’m still really lost? Am I missing something?” Izuku asks, genuinely confused. 

Shouto sighs, and takes the bracelet box out. He hands it to Izuku without a word and without looking at him. 

“Okay? So you kept the bracelet box, I have stuff you gave me too, Shou, I don’t know why this would upset me?” Izuku is actually getting a little frustrated now, not comprehending the point Shouto is trying to make. Shouto finally looks at him, and his eyes are wet with tears about to spill over. 

“Open it, then,” he whispers, shifting uncomfortably. Izuku does.

Inside the box is a note. In Shouto’s green penmanship it reads, “Izuku, please stay by my side?” Izuku’s breath stops as he lifts the paper to find two rings, metal braided with gems. One with rubies and one with emeralds.

“Oh.” Izuku says, voice shaking.

“Oh?” Shouto asks, the question barely audible. 

“I-“ Izuku starts, but Shouto cuts him off.

“See, I told you. It’s weird, I’m weird. You hate me now, right?” 

Izuku brings his eyes to meet Shouto’s, both glistening with the promise of tears, but for very different reasons. And then, like lightning Izuku’s hands are on Shouto’s cheeks, his lips on Shouto’s lips. Shouto’s eyes widened for a split second, before falling shut. When they pull away, they’re both crying, but also smiling.

Izuku chuckles, and it turns into a hearty laugh, the laugh Shouto wants to hear forever.

“Shou, you’re on fire”

“No you,” Shouto says back, totally dazed.

Izuku laughs harder and Shouto smiled wider, for once it’s Shouto’s face that looks like it might split in two.

“No Shou, you’re literally on fire,” Izuku giggles.

The fire alarm goes off and Shouto laughs, “shit, I guess I am.”

 

After putting himself out, yet again, Shouto looks at Izuku.

“So, uh, I love you. I’m in love with you. If you didn’t get that.”

Izuku smiles, his eyes glittering with happiness. “Yeah, Shou, I got that. I love you, too. If you didn’t get that.”

Shouto laughs, and it sounds like all of Izuku’s favorite songs combined into one composition. They fall into each other, hugging and leaving small kisses on each other. 

Izuku stops, looking at Shouto with curiosity. 

“So what’s on the DVD?”

“Oh, um, every picture we’ve ever taken?” Shouto starts, bashfully. “And then a video of me after graduation, waxing poetic about loving you,” he finishes.

Izuku gives him a lopsided grin. “Oh, we are so watching that tonight.”

Shouto laughs, “yeah sure, it’s super embarrassing though.”

“And the plane tickets?” Izuku inquires.

“Ah, I uh, thought I’d take you to where All Might made his US debut and confess, but I chickened out,” Shouto mumbles.

Izuku honest to god squeals, then speaks so fast Shouto is afraid he misses something. “That is so cute. You are so cute. I love you. God I’m so happy I can say that now. I’m going to say that to you until you’re tired of hearing it!”

Shouto looks at Izuku square in the eye, and as seriously as possible while smiling says, “I will never get tired of hearing that, Izuku. I love you so much I feel like I might explode. What have I done to deserve you?”

“I could ask you the same thing, Shouto. I could ask you the same thing.”

They spend the rest of the night watching the DVD, eating their take-out when it finally arrives, and cuddling on the couch. They laugh and lament over how blind they both were to each other’s affection, and Shouto wants to scream when Izuku tells him the bracelets were supposed to be a confession.

“I can’t believe I was so oblivious,” Shouto groans.

Izuku giggles. “Well I could’ve been more clear, it’s not like I screamed ‘I love you’ from the roof of UA or anything.”

“Well, you should have. Or I should have. Maybe we should’ve just screamed at each other,” Shouto laughs.

“No, I think this was perfect. Even if it was kind of a mess and an accident, I’ve never felt so loved,” Izuku says.

Shouto grabs his hands, and kisses his nose. “Well get ready, because I want you to feel like that everyday from now on.”

Izuku smiles, closing his eyes and laying down. 

“Well you get ready,” he says as Shouto lays on him, curling into his chest and regaining his grasp on Izuku’s hands, “because I want you to feel the same.”

They fall asleep like that, curled together, hands and wrists a mishmash of rings and bracelets.

**Author's Note:**

> I hope y’all liked it!! I tried my best! Thanks to Riss for telling me to post this hot mess! If this goes over okay I will probably continue writing TDDK :) 
> 
> Feedback is much appreciated <3
> 
> Follow me on twitter if you are so inclined: @dekukins


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